Yes Man

This film starring Jim Carrey was on my most-anticipated list. I caught it yesterday night @ AMC Del Amo 18. There was a lot of jokes where i laughed out loud. A really funny film.

I came back from a tiring day at office, had a powernap of 50 minutes and woke up at 9. Made a nescafe to give make me alert. Had the leftover fried rice for dinner and went to the theatre.

The film is based on a book by Danny Wallace, a guy who decides to say 'Yes' to any offer, demand or opportunity that comes by. That a person actually did it in his life is astounding. Now, this is nothing for Mr. Wallace, who has done another experiment where he lived 'exactly according to biblical laws'.



Enough about the book. In the film, Jim Carrey portrays Carl, who has been dumped by his girlfriend. Ever since that happened he becomes some kind of a hermit, declining to socialize or make any kind of involvement in his own life. Inspired by a friend of his, he attends a motivation seminar, where he decides to say Yes to everything. Thus begins a series of funny and hilarious events. Somewhere along the way he meets Allison, a free bird who sings in a ragtag band, does jogging-photography and rides a scooter most dangerously. They like each other, and launch into a torrid love affair.




My favorite scene from the film was where they sneak up into Los Angeles Hollywood Bowl and sing a song together. Jim Carrey is ok, but Zooey Deschannel's backing vocals are damn funny. (Her eyes remind me of a Huski Dog-or a yakshi)

How does it compare to my all-time favorite 'Bruce Almighty'? It lacks the emotional depth,bitterness or the message of Bruce Almighty, but it is delightful for all the laughs.

Watch this movie.Laughter is good for your health.

Movie Trailer from Youtube:

Malibu Temple

This is the temple i visited for my vahana pooja. We got stuck in traffic, missed 2 exits and by the time we reached here it was going to be closed. So i couldnt perform an actual pooja. One thing i noted was that there were no oil lamps. CA law has prohibited anyone from making open fires. thats why. LA sees many wild fires all the time..

This photo was made possible by tripod.

Free DVDs with Redbox

I think you all must have seen the Redbox kiosks in supermarkets.(US folks). I am having a nice time getting free DVDs from Redbox.



The redbox frequently gives out promo codes using which you can get free rentals for a night each. The catch is that a code can be used only once on a card.(You need to swipe a card at the end of DVD selection for identification) And some codes are only for first time users.

But most our USA households have atleast 2 cards, which means you can use those codes twice. If you are a husband and wife both with a debit and credit card, one code means 4 DVDs!

In my case, i am living with 2 guys who have no interest in English movies whatsoever. I get their cards each time i get a code (well not always as i don't feel greedy all the time). If you keep the DVD for more than one night, you will be charged. So i come home, copy the DVD using the fabulous software DVDFab and give it back (if i dont find time to see it first)

Here are some codes to get started:
REDBOX (first timer code- use first)
DVDONME (can be used once)
BREAKROOM (can be used once)

Good thing with Redbox (compared to Netflix) is that you have a better chance of landing latest DVDs. Also, you can get whichever type of movie you are in the mood for.

These are some sites for finding Redbox codes:
www.insideredbox.com
www.redboxcodes.com

These days i am seeing a flaw on the Redbox validation logic...More on that later.

A Farewell to my MAK! (With tears)

He was with me for a few days. In those very few hours i had begun to like him a lot. Though a little old, he was capable. He had character. He could accelerate well and give good transmission with his 2.0L engine. His audio system picked up my ipod and would give a concert. Above all, he made me independent for the time he was with me.

With him, i went to some of the places i wanted to go for a long time. In the three days he was with me, we travelled some 200+ miles.

I lost him in an accident in Los Angeles. One stupid mex guy jumped a Red light and i could not stop in time to save my mak. I floored the brakes but i slammed into that car.
His seat belts and airbags saved yours truly. It was like out of a bad dream. Mak had sufferred a lot of damages. I will be never able to forgive myself. I am inconsolable from that day.

I used to tell him, one day my nithya will come from India and we will go on long drives. We will be a happy family. But that was not to be.

It is my destiny. God moves in mysterious ways. May be He wanted to help that bengali babu who sold me the car. But He did not want me to have this car.Bengali babu himself was very sad on the day he gave over the keys. I cant start to imagine if he comes to know.

I was going to come to Office in Mak starting monday. Going to get the parking permit. Now all that is cancelled plans. I am again a dependant creature. Mak who gave me independance for some days, is gone now. Mak, I will miss you.

Blankets - a Graphic Novel

Wikipedia:A graphic novel is a type of comic book, usually with a lengthy and complex storyline similar to those of novels, and often aimed at mature audiences.

For me:A movie in a book.I am sort of a visual person.

Recently i completed this graphic novel, Blankets by Craig Thompson. It was a beautiful experience. Wrapped in the landscape of a blustery Wisconsin winter, BLANKETS explores the sibling rivalry of two brothers growing up in the isolated country, and the budding romance of two coming-of-age lovers.The author has great visual sense and each page is like a beautiful storyboard. The book is sad,beautiful and nostalgic all at the same time.



I would like to share with you a beautiful moment from the book below.





















This makes me miss Nithya even more.

Hollywood Wax Museum

Weekend i had gone on a visit to Hollywood Blvd. Main activity of the night was seeing a film in the famous Grauman's Chinese Theatre. I strolled along the street and saw some other attractions too. The best of these was the wax museum.

Wax Museum and Guinness Records Museum comes in a combo ticket as it is run by the same management. You might think that a museum devoted to the world records must be cool. You thought wrong. Instead of portraying the records in visuals, the 60% of museum is in writing. It is a lot of reading to do. Better to get the book then. Only fun thing in this museum is to put yourself into the body of the man with the biggest waist.



The wax museum is also not that good, several of the wax figures bear no resemblance to the actual celebrities. I took photos of all the good ones, saving you about 15$.
I used my new tripod on this journey and it was very useful. Low light, long shutter, stationary subjects. Its tailor made for a tripod photo.


I cant even recognize these ladies, but Samuel Jackson seems like he would burst into a dialogue any minute.


Angelina Jolie. I dont know who the hunks are. They look like anybody.


Tomb Raider


Tommy Lee Jones and someone who doesnt look like Will Smith


Governator as conan the barbarian


There was some "horror path" also inside the museum. I did not have the courage to go in there. May be when i get company.

A Toast to Judy

Me and Judy are proud CETians. But we never met at CET. We were in the same batch in August 2004 SC Internet Stream, still nothing. For that matter we were all in that batch and i knew just Varna then.

I am one of those specimens of humankind to whom making friends is not a present ability. I have a very few friends in life and all of them came into my life. I feel that every good friend that i have, i haven't made that friendship, but they give me that privilege of friendship.I am thus privileged to be a friend of Judy.

When i came to Mangalore, i was granted membership of the best gang of friends i have seen. I spotted Judy and Joise in that circle. I could see they are "together" in the best sense. I had a lot of good thing in common with Joise, lazyiness and C&H being two. This paved way for a friendship with Judy. I still remember three of ours first outing together - searching for shopping in all the wrong places in Mangalore. Lunch at Heerapanna.

Soon, we would be frequenting the most dreaded of hangout places in all of Mangalore- The Maitri. Joise and me 'had a thing' for the chicken manjurian of Maithri.(Well what can i say it is the one of the best dishes in Mangalore.) Judy had the audacity (ofcourse propelled by feelings for Joise) to come to Maithri. The only other girl i have seen with that same audacity is Nithya (This means going to maithri is like a test for your love)

I could always count on Judy,and she has been more than a caring friend for me. I had a lot of tough spots in the last 4 years and she has given me a lot of support. I have tried to pay back by accompanying her on some shopping trips (yes girls,this is the biggest thing a guy can do for you) once to Kudla and once for a great movie 'Salaam Namaste'.I am lucky she still thinks of me as a friend.

She has some distinct qualities:
1. The only person who brought sweets (a huge number of them) to celebrate a national holiday.(he he)
2. One of the best cooks i have seen.

When i was thinking of becoming a lifelong bachelor (yes i had those fantasies) i told them i would come and stay with them once in a while, after they become a family. I realized this 'vision' some time ago. I felt that after i make a mess of staying in their home she would not talk to me. I was wrong. We still talk on the phone and i did wish her happy birthday.




Happy birthday, Judy! (And wishing she would forgive me for this post!)

That thing you do!

The first time i heard this song, i was in the Dollar Store, Mangalore. Its infectious peppy tune caught me. I have been listening to this song since then. Recently i saw the film whose original sound track is this, and i am happy i did.

The film, also named "That thing you do" tells the story of a teenage band which raises to the top with its hit single. Unlike the "Rock On", this film has a light feel. You feel like you are watching some of your friends through their good times.

The movie is written and directed by Tom Hanks.He has a good role as the band's manager.The stars of the band are all quite unknown, except Liv Tyler and Steve Zahn.In one of the insignificant roles is one of my favs, Charlize Theron who fades away quickly.



That all the actors who make up the band were made to study the instruments is one detail which points to the extent Hanks went here.This is a film you can curl up on an afternoon to, and come back refreshed.

The song:

Craiglist Scams...(Fake) Sad stories

At this time I have some personal problems and I need to sell the car as fast as possible because I need the money. This is my only reason for selling this beauty otherwise I wouldn't do it.The deal will be handled by Swift Vehicle Trade


The car was my husband`s as he loved it very much, but he did not enjoy it as he died in a IRAQ 3 month ago. It brings very bad memories to me, I want to get rid of it.
The buyer will receive the car with all papers and receipts that he needs to register it to his name.Shipping will be done whit DAS and it will take no more then 2-3 days. I have a friend there who will manage me a low price shipping and I assumed that it is my duty to pay for shipping it.It will be delivered directly to your address.


Currently the car is located in Bronx, New York at the shipping company.
There i lived with my ex-husband until i divorce. Now I am located in San Jose, California where i grow up. I'm very busy looking a home and with my new job and that's way i leave the car at the shipping company.I know that you want to see it before you buy it but I've done some research on the Internet and for that i found eBay Purchase Protection Program. If you are still interested in this transaction with me please let me know and i will explain the whole process.

I`m a single mother with 2 children and i have problems with money, that`s why i`m selling it so cheap. I need to sell the car quickly because I will move from town. We will use eBay`s Protection Program for our safety. If you are interested in buying my car, e-mail me. I am currently using my son's e-mail address.


I'm very busy with my job and I'm often out of town so I can't meet in person with you and this is the reason why I opted to sell my car over the internet. I want to use eBay protection program for our safety and for payme

Thank you for your interest in my car...at the moment the car is located at the shipping company in Annapolis Maryland ready for delivery. Because I'm a single mother with 2 children's i don't have time to meet up with potential buyers and i looking permanently a job.


I am now in a divorce with my ex and i am in desperate need of money to pay the mortgage on my house. That's my only reason for selling it otherwise I wouldn't do it.
The deal will be handled by eBay trough their eBay Vehicle Purchase Program . They will handle the title and money transfer and deliver the car to your location. The car is at their office in Minneapolis MN.

A hack for Kelly Blue Book adhava KBB

I find KBB very useful for finding fair price for used cars. The only bad thing was that you need to do many clicks to get to the page where you can see the price.

Here is a trick which will cut down your number of clicks to one or two.
If you are a command-line person you would like this, if not -Sorry.

Example. Say you want to know the price of a 2002 Toyota Corolla and you are buying from a private party.

Just enter this into the url after http://www.kbb.com/KBB/UsedCars/ :-
2004_Toyota_Corolla_Private Party.aspx

The full URL is now:http://www.kbb.com/KBB/UsedCars/2004_Toyota_Corolla_Private Party.aspx

If you want the trade-in price make the end of URL Trade-In.aspx
If you want the retail value, make the end of the URL Retail.aspx

Just change the year, make and model according to your needs each time. No need to goto their menu page and click on year, make, model, and go buttons. There- i have saved you some clicks. Now spend that energy in seeing some TV.

Car Search

Car search continues...

Some on my hit list:-
2002 Toyota Corolla LE Sedan 4 Door
101 K Miles
$ 5000

2004 Nissan Sentra 1.8 S Sedan 4D
98 K miles
$ 6,000

2002 Mitsubishi Galant DE Sedan 4D
81 K miles
$ 5200

1997 Honda Civic DX 4D
68 K Miles
$ 4850

Planning to see the first two on weekdays (its near my house) and last two during weekend (little far places)

Cat Cartoons

These are from a book called 'Newyorkers Cat Cartoons'..Brought a lot of chuckles to me..:)

Looking for a car...

This post on craiglist looks fine..

2000 Honda Civic HX (LOW MILES) - $4200 (Los Angeles (Korea Town))



Its a 2000 Honda Civic HX Coupe with 74k mileage. Single owner. (verified from carfax. He is not asking for ebay, shipping etc like common craiglist scammers)

This is the carfax report: Carfax Report Link

I am feeling this is kind of good for me. Anyways i have to check this out in person.

Slumdog Millionaire - Review

Yesterday i went to see a movie that is making a lot of waves here. Slumdog Millionaire. It was playing
at Laemmle Monica4 (Santa Monica), a chain of theatres showing non-mainstream movies. This is kind of a treasure trove for people wanting to see meaningful, non-popcorn movies.Like this one.

The theatre was houseful. And for a movie based in India, the only Indian in that moviehall seemed to be me.It was a nice experience seeing the movie here. It reminded me of the time i saw 'Crash' in Mangalore Adlabs.The audience reacted as a single being to many scenes. Collective sad sighs, collective shocks etc. At the end of the movie, the moviehall resounded with the claps from all patrons.

Synopsis: SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE is the story of Jamal Malik, an 18 year-old orphan from the slums of Mumbai, who is about to experience the biggest day of his life. With the whole nation watching, he is just one question away from winning a staggering 20 million rupees on India’s “Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?” But when the show breaks for the night, police arrest him on suspicion of cheating; how could a street kid know so much? Desperate to prove his innocence, Jamal tells the story of his life in the slum where he and his brother grew up, of their adventures together on the road, of vicious encounters with local gangs, and of Latika, the girl he loved and lost. Each chapter of his story reveals the key to the answer to one of the game show’s questions. Intrigued by Jamal’s story, the jaded Police Inspector begins to wonder what a young man with no apparent desire for riches is really doing on this game show? When the new day dawns and Jamal returns to answer the final question, the Inspector and sixty million viewers are about to find out.

The movie is based on the novel by Vikas Swarup, Q&A. It won the People's Choice award at Toronto Film Festival. This is a synthesis of Bollywood-style story and Hollywood-Style treatment, with only the good ingredients from each side. Music is by A.R.Rahman with a energetic song sequence 'Jai Ho' at the end along with the titles. The beginning of the song drew knowing smiles from the western viewers. The screenplay by Simon Beaufoy (Full Monty) is brilliant in gripping you till the end. Danny Boyle (Trainspotting, 28 Days Later) helms the direction. The cinematography is colorful and fast-paced. The actors (especially the kids who portray the childhood) are superb.

One of the best films of the year, it is expected to release in India by end of January.
Trailer of Slumdog Millionaire:

Black Friday

I have done my part to revive things. I have put some funds into the American Economy.I lined up at 4 am in the morning at Best Buy and bought things worth 500 $.
I got two small cameras for my parents and Nithya's. (Kodak C 813 and Fujifilm J12).
one 320 GB External Hard drive,8 GB card for camera, a tripod and a flash drive.

We had gone to check the status yesterday night, and we had seen people staying in tents outside Bestbuy. But things could have been worse.

Coming back from the Bestbuy everyone was hungry. I influenced their decision and we ended up at Dennys. The sweet smell of pancakes in the morning..heavenly!

We roomies went to JC Penney/Sears too but i did not buy any clothes. Buying clothes is a big chore for me. Without Nithya it is difficult for me to buy any clothes.

I had rented a car from Enterprise on Wednesday to drive around in the weekend. I am enjoying the driving, and i am pretty confident now.

I had got a GPS with the car which stopped working on the second day.Going to distant palces without GPS is difficult. So i bought myself a GPS. Then i came to know, there is a problem with the car, where power is given to GPS.

Bolt

I saw Bolt on Saturday night. It was a nice film. Funny, Feel-good, Touching, a disney film in all ways.

The story is about a eager-to-please dog Bolt, who is the star of an action TV series.His 'person' Penny loves him, but he thinks that all that he sees on the set are real, and he is actually a superdog. The producers of the show are keeping him in this fake world (a la Trueman Show) because it brings out true emotions in him. One day when the producers go for a cliffhanger ending (instead of the regular happy ending) with his co-star being kidnapped in front of his eyes. Pandamonium and hilarity ensues when Bolt bolts on a cross-country trip to save Penny, meeting some colorful characters on the way.





There is a lot of comic relief in the shape of Rhino (actually a hamster). The Bolts unlikely animal companion, Mittens the kitten is endearing and (sadly slim like a somalian kid.) The forgetful pigeons...I laughed out loud each time they came onscreen. They are like the penguins of Madagascar.

This brings me to another point: Why hollywood movies are so partial to Dogs? Where is the cat-saves-the-day movie? I understand they are hard to be made to do something (after all, they are independant creatures unlike dogs); but animation should make it possible.

Cats were always made out to be either the villains pets (numerous Bond movies) or villains ( Cats n Dogs - a anti-cat movie) or laughingstock (Tom & Jerry).I really hope they make some movie with a hero cat.

The 3D animation was top-notch, with the first action sequence on the freeway which was super than any other real action movie i have seen in a long time. John Travolta's voice is great and has all the correct feelings.The humour is character-based and while kid-friendly (i gather from the kids who were seeing the film) is as funny to adults too.
Go see it.

Passed driving test!

i passed my driving test..!!

Today morning i was really tense. I dont remember when i felt so tense before. May be it was when i had surgery. Mahesh who drives well had flunked twice. I chatted with Nithya and Madhura in the morning who wished me luck. I needed that.

Antonio picked me up at 9 and we went around the dmv testing route and also in town and freeway once. I made one or two mistakes during this trip, that too very basic ones. I could still feel the tension.

We got to the DMV, got the appointment, waited. I drank some water. Then the test started.
It was an old lady. She was friendly. I did the preliminary things like showing signals, defroster, wiper, emergency signal, brake lights, parking brake, headlight etc.

Then we started and she asked me to pull over to the curb. I pulled over, but was not close enough. She asked me to pull closer. I went too close "Not that close" she said, and i think i smelt fear. It was an incline. I felt that i had flunked the test.

Then we went on the driving around test. Did lane changes, turns, stops etc. I got some confidence. I could see her writing somethings. "Ticking is ok but writing is not good- it may be bad feedback" i thought in my mind.

We came back to the DMV, parked the car. She gave me some feedback on the braking (have to be smoother) and said atlast "You have definitely passed" I was very happy. She gave me the paperwork and we parted with "good day"s.

I was so happy i tried to give my instructor Antonio a treat, but he could not understand what i was trying to say (language has been a barrier all the time for us) Then i bought him a pack of M&Ms. I hope he likes it.

I was expecting that they will take a photo today, so i had gone with trimmed beard (bulgan) but alas they are going to use my photo of that first day- the one with the mexican/handlebar moustache. I hope people dont ask me "Hablas español?"

Cats of USA !!

It looks so real, but its a toy.


This one was at Charles Park in Torrance,CA. Found near a board which said "abandonment of animals is a misdeamanour and is punishable"


This one was at a winery in napa walley. I think it is thinking of the meaning of life after having some glasses of sauvignon blanc.It looks similar to the last one.

Camera Shop

I saw a camera shop called Silvios Camera here.Will be visiting on Saturday again. I think i should know how each camera feels in my hands.

Things i like in America-1

One of the things i like very much about america is its solid address system. Every address has a standard form and it is very easy to find any place using the address.

Essentially all streets are named and have visible boards denoting it, and all buildings on a street are numbered in sequence.

It is so easy, I wonder how i used to find places back in India!! It was all dependant on which places you know.

"Hey do u know where is Suchitra theatre"
"Yeah.."
"How to go"
"Hmm do you know PVS?"
"No"
"Do you know Saibeen"
"No"
"Do you know Urwastore"
"Yes"
(Deerkha nishwasam)

I dont know i feel like this cos i travel in bus, may be our friends can shed some light on it.

I've got a designated driver! :))))

I have got what i have been searching for since i discovered alcohol and driving dont mix well. A designated driver. in the family.

Nithya passed her driving license test in Mangalore yesterday :) Now when i am am coming back drunk from kadals There is someone to drive me home...as for america, now that she knows driving in india, it wont be a big deal to re-learn driving here..

Searching for a DSLR

I am on the journey to find a good, affordable DSLR. This is like finding a wife. In that one i had God's help, i hope here also i get some. I am damn confused.

Once upon a time i was sure, i wanted a Canon DSLR. Only question was which one, which can be easily answered by looking at my bank balance.

Then confusion entered my life in the shape of my collegue, Nil. He is a good photographer. He also uses Canon S5 IS, my current camera. He was hell-bent on buying a Pentax camera. "If you can get the same quality at low price, why go for Canon?" This is his question. Monday, he went ahead and put the order for a Pentax K20D.Today, he showed me this comparison on a supposedly fair site:



Now, if i had to go from Canon to Nikon (not the one in the pic) there might not have been much thought -cos i have heard a lot about Nikon. But Pentax??

1) Havent heard much about this brand.
2) Searching about Pentax seems like learning a new language.
3) Many of my favorite photographers use Canon/Nikon.

In canon i had set my mind on 450D, but Feby has influenced me towards 40D. The logic was, why go for a camera with 3fps when you can go 6.5 fps.
But the 40D is almost 250-300$ more than 450D. And it comes with a kit lens i am not too impressed with.

The kit lens is Canon EF 28-135mm f/3.5-5.6 IS USM Lens.

Then i looked at Canon EF-S 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6 IS Lens. This has an awesome focus range (11x) and can avoid lens changes in travel.
But it seems to have some problems..like at 18mm there is barrel distortion. (straight things look a little curved)
And the bokeh is also not nice.

All the good zoom lenses in Canon for general purpose seem to be very pricey. (Photography is not a cheap hobby)

I wanted atleast one good genral purpose lens and one good portrait lens. (Next in my wishlist is a good macro lens..may be a 100mm to take butterflies)
So the search for lens continues..

With 450 D, i could take these lenses:
450 D and 18-55 639.00
EF-S 55-250mm f/4-5.6 IS 225.15
Actual price 864.15
Rebated Price 825.00

Choices with 40 D
40 D-Body 859
with 28-135 lens 1059

EF-S 18–200mm f/3.5–5.6 IS 575 (which is looking uninteresting now)


Portrait Lens Choices (i have limited myself to < 500$ lenses)
Canon EF 85mm f/1.8 USM Lens 355
Canon EF 100mm f/2.0 USM 395
Canon EF-S 60mm f/2.8 USM Lens 384
Canon EF 50mm f/1.4 USM Lens 320

Still searching for a General purpose lens...

One thing i have discovered is that Camera purchase doesnt have to be on Thanksgiving.
But Canon gives some discount during fall-winter (Nov-Jan) time. It may be prudent to take benefit from that.

Road to Perdition

Saturday i saw this brilliant movie. It is like a wine which slowly grips you.Moving in an unhurried pace, its grip on your mind is strong.

The story is about a hitman/assassin (Tom Hanks) who is forced to flee with his son, when the son (Daniel Craig) of the boss of the crime syndicate (Paul Newman) he works for, turns against his family. Close on his heels is a weird assassin(Jude Law) who takes photos of his victims and sells to press.The tension, suspense, drama all are very much alive. All the actors did well. Daniel Craig in his before-bond days looks like he could use some food.

About the photography: The film has a distinct 'cold look'. Some frames look like paintings. The last shootout scene, where the gleen from soaked surfaces, moonlight and even the gunfire combine to make a majestic picture, director has turned the sound mute to let you revel in its beauty.

M&J Wine Mystery

M&J Series-Duty Calls

Story: J
Pictures:M

When Harry Met Sally...an overrated film

Whew. I saw d film.

It was a tiring journey. I did not have subtitles at first. So i downloaded subtitles and ripped the movie to a divx file. Then i saw with the subtitles.Was all that worth it? Sadly no.

I kept on going to other things in between scenes. I could not concentrate on the movie, it did not have that power to keep me fixed. The story of two people, in between relationships and each other.

May be it is a girls movie. I knew HumTum was inspired from this one, i could see some of the scenes which came out of this. They trying to fix each other with their friends, and the friends getting hitched to each other, for eg. But i feel HumTum was a guys version of this movie, so i liked it.

Thinking back, i think i had a problem with all those 80's rom-coms. Sleepless in Seattle, You've got Mail.. Hmmm there is a pattern emerging here- Meg Ryan.

Only good part i liked was the ending, with the dialogue " I came here tonight because when you realize you want to spend the rest of your life with somebody, you want the rest of your life to start as soon as possible."

I want to see HumTum again.

M&J SFO Trip -Part 1

-- TO BE CONTINUED --

I am Klueless!! Klueless 4 Hints & Clues

After 3 days of sneaking into Klueless page in office, i am klueless now..There were some hard steps along the way, and some of them i still dont know the connect. I solved the levels once more, to gather the content for my next post, and i learned some more things. Its a feeling of achievement. Time to bring out the champagne!

As promised, here are the hints and clues to answers of all the levels.

0. Find the clickable object.

1. Just Repeat what is given in the page.

2. No textbox. Nothing clickable. It is evident you have to change the URL to goto the next level. Look at the version in the image. Look at title of page. Something wrong? correct it. As the clue in the source says, change the url to go from past to present.

3. Just pickup the mistakes and see it forming a word. You will find the answer to be a walk in the park. Or rather not a park.

4. Translate the title. What does it mean? The source says 'None before.' So it/he
should be the first. Look at the numbers. What is the similarity of these numbers?
So first + similarity+ translation.

5. Link to the power.Hey, some logos are missing, and one remaining has moved. Lets
click it. The url is cbc.asp. Check that in google. How is that and the logo connected.? Find that one in the page opened on clicking the logo. You will see power again.

6. What is in a name? Title says cartoon. URL Says quack. the image name is dd..all pointing to the guy in the picture. We are stuck in the "middle" ...Find it..

7. o,t,t,f,f,_,_,e,n,_,_ The most simple series in the world. Image file name says
1432, so arrange the missing ones in that order.

8. Lucas Number. He helps Santa pull his sleigh. If you look up the reindeers who pull Santas sleigh, you will find something which looks like the image. which is the most famous of these? Alchemy stole is an anagram.

9. Title and URL both point to gibberish, and page contains a lot of the same. Search in google.

10. The position of celebrities have a connection. All are hollywood couples also. Who is missing. The answer is a pet name for them together.

11. The mecca surrounded by .. search those famous names in google and and you will know which mecca (or what's mecca) is this. Now it seems this mecca was in different place before..what was that place?

12. Do you know what that ink blo-like figure in the back? If you dont, search in google for complex geomatrical figures. Now you will see that the person who gave it the name has a name similar to Nelson Mandela + the name of the chicken soup.

13. The writing will be familiar to folks who have seen a legendary trilogy of fantasy films, ring any bells? You may have seen shah rukh khan written as srk, you need to do the opposite here.And as there are no text boxes or links to next level, you need to change the URL. If you search the decoded text in google you will get a wikipedia page with the name you need to give for the page name. Remember, you have to change the part before the .asp

14. Search the hint in the page source in google. Soon you will find that precious is actually an abbreviation.Like Regards= Ruby, Emerald, Garnet, Amethyst, Ruby, and Diamond. Now, the rings on the image have 7 stones. Find what its abbreviated name is..Now is the time to get a help from your girlfriend.

15. This presents you with 3 doors - They are 15a,15b,15c - doors to the next level.
15a.Many Elderly people ... what is this? And Page title asks you to wake up and look up. There is a planet in the sky.. The page source gives this hint: Who is missing? I think you need to take another look at that sentence.

15x:
Dead end. Come back to level 15 and choose other door.

15c. Hmm..Look at the pictures. Everyone is singing, but the lamb is muted..And there is a dragon of a specific color in the middle. Things point to a movie. And it had a central character. Something more about the character will be found in the sentence given.

15x:
Dead end is a dead end. Come back to level 15 and choose other door.

15b. Hmm..havent you seen a similar page? Go there and do something different this time.

1a. It asks for a username and password. Think of in which page's source you saw the words username and password. The answers for those pages are, infact the required info.

Welcome to the Upper Echelon!

16. A message in victorian english. And the page source says: If ONE can do it then why all? Where do u do this most often? Yes, in SMS. Translate message to SMS Lingo.
The page title has yoU. that must be important.Or it should be deleted wherever we find it? And image file name is 2134. It almost tells us to arrange the letters in a sequence right?

17. This is a weird card, and cards can be viewed upside down also, you know. Look at the page title and do it.

18. Try to answer the first two questions. Put together they point to a dictionary you might be using all the time. Now enter the numbers and get the key. Without Finland you may bark up the wrong tree.

19 Add the page title and image file name to know what this is about. Now say the names of things you can see in images. You can see a branch of mathematics, a pair of BRANDED tvs, and a PAIR of something and fish whose name is blurred (that is the most direct hint i see now)

20. Search the text given in google. Find the meaning of characters given (check image name for language). And title says Sum It up.

21. "it's not the means but the end, which matters"- says the page source. Another page to change the URL to go forward. Also, it is the end that matters...the end of the file name is? and to what it should be changed? AT Six PoinT would give you the answer.It has both the before and after.

Now when you change the URL you see a sentence, an instruction.Do what it says (MS Word can do it in a sec) and then use that result, plus the before you got from AT Six Point (Essentially doing first step in reverse)


22. Page title. Image file name. all point to something.If you want still more clues, look at the page source.It is simply staring you in the face. These things have a name.

23. I did not solve the crypt. They want the first sponsor. A clue is there in the page title, and the URL.

24. In the year that Le Napolean was launched, something/someone was laid to rest. Mary did it. Search Le Napolean in wikipedia, get the year, search for the year in wikipedia. There are some direct clues to what you have to look for, in the URL and the hint in page source. Once you have found it, just look through the wiki entry.
You will feel clues falling into place.

25. The page title says Notepad. The image fiename is use. And hint says 'clue is
elsewhere. What can be opened from this page in Notepad. Open it and search for clue. Got the clue? Mind the commas. Now using the calculator diagram encode the numbers. Got some numbers again? Just one more decoding. It is not difficult.

26. Do you remember this bridge from your engineering class? It is called konigsberg
problem or ? There is something common between the four pictures. For a hint you can look at the page title.

27. Where have you seen this kind of a paper? Where the numbers combined would point to something? Look at the image file name also. You can use a google service to find the answer. The same one you use so that you dont get .

28. Have you seen this frame somewhere? The words? That somewhere is A. Answer the
questions on the front,which will give you a number. Answer the question in the page source, which will give you a name.Now find th on A.

29. Have you seen these pictures somewhere? If you know the answer a ding dong will
sound in your mind. Otherwise open the word and play until you find something similar. When you have found the code, decode the pictures to legible language.
The hint in the page source will sound another ding dong now. With that code, encode the legible language again. See some hand signals and symbols? Now look at the page title, it says "Calculate". Go on, calculate. Result is the key to next level.

30. The image shows a page from IIM IRIS site. Page title says alternate.Hint in the
page source says get the original 1 2..Find the differences between this image and the actual site. I am not sure what to do now. I looked at klueless blog which says, the difference of differences gives a series. Go on, try the serieses. I will give you one more clue. It has to do with Davinci Code.

31. Page Title-Perplexed. URL-muddled. Image file name-confused. Any other synonym we have seen a lot?

We have conquered the Klueless 4!!

There are some more hints and clues in these blogs:

Random Walk of Life
Sometp
Scribblings of a Different Kind

Almost Klueless

I reached 30th level of Klueless! I just need to complete this one stage!
After that i will post all the clues & hints.

Klueless 4

This is one addictive game. Created by IIM Indore, this is a online puzzle challenge.
Each page will have a question. The challenge is to get to the next level (next page) in whichever fashion. May be putting the correct answer in the text box, or clicking something.Each level is devilishly smart.

Currently I am at Level 18, which has got me bugged.I will be posting the answers when i am done.

Check out the game here

Some sites for hints and more clues:
Random Walk of Life
Klueless 4? Not anymore :)
Scribblings - of a different kind

Sauvignon Blanc

The interest for wines was deposited in me by my good friend, Joise. Now i am writing this drinking a wine.a Sauvignon Blanc.

Back in India, i used to think nothing of wines. But after coming to US, i have become more interested in wines. For one thing, Napa valley, the birthplace of many wines, is in California. Joise and i had a Sauvignon blanc wine the day i arrived in SFO.

I have begun to research into wines a lot. For eg.
Sauvignon blanc is a green-skinned grape variety which originates from the Bordeaux region of France. The grape gets its name from the French word sauvage ("wild") and blanc ("white") due to its early origins as an indigenous grape in South West France.
(Wikipedia)

Sauvignon blanc is described as crisp, elegant, and fresh. I couldn't agree more.

Life of Pi

I completed this book last week.The verdict i can give is, 'it is not that boring', considering it got Booker prize last year. During the 2 weeks i spent in reading this book, i never felt like giving up on it. Yeah, there are some books which are so boring, you give up on them. One example is "Fools Die" by Mario Puzo. I picked it up after getting blown away by his other book, "Godfather". After about 25 pages of "Fools Die", my interest died.

Coming to Life of Pi, it is the story of an Indian boy, named Piscine Patel, after a famous swimming pool.He changes his name to Pi (yes, 3.14) to escape the boys in his school who wanted to change it to Pissing. Pi patel grows to love all religions and Gods. His father owned a zoo in Pondichery. All is well until Emergency is declared and life becomes tough.They decide to immigrate to Canada, taking with them the animals which they have sold to zoos in Canada.Their ship sinks in the Pacific, and Pi is the lone survivor..wait. He and the Bengal Tiger in their zoo, Richard Parker are the survivors.



They end up on the same lifeboat.How he survives Richard Parker? how long to reach land? These are the questions answered in the story.

The first part details Pi's childhood and time till the ship journey, and it is quite a lot of fun. After the ship sinks, some boredom does creep in. There are some chapters dedicated to the discussion of different type of fishes, and what he sees around him (clue:pretty much nothing).

Now i am reading the bestseller, Twilight by Stephanie Meyer. It's movie is releasing this month end. It is a love story between a vampire and a human girl (she is the protagonist).

Halloween

October 31st was Halloween. I and Nilotpal had planned to goto Halloween Carnival and take photos. But in the end he backed out. Well, it is a truth that Canon S5 fails miserably After sunset. Still, I wanted to have a glimpse of the culture here so I went ahead.

The carnival was crowded. You had to pay 5$ to get in. Once in, all games are free. But games were all for kids, so I just clicked away.



The only way to click photos in low-light in S5 is to take Sports mode. It is a high ISO mode. The photos tend to be really grainy, but blur is avoided. You can get some good results through noise reduction in software. I got some candids of people in costumes. The kids in various fairy costumes were looking really cute, but really difficult to capture on camera.





Towards the end I gathered some courage to ask people to pose for my photos. I think Americans are really casual, and during the Halloween they are out to show off. I got some good photos there.

Lady with the fangs.And friends.



When I asked people to pose for this photo, the girl with the braces was standing away, I asked her to come into the frame. Looking back I wonder if I did wrong – were the other two a couple?

And then there was this guy in Joker costume, he looked really like Joker.



Last but not the least, this is yours truly with some Halloween folks ( Angry witch, Frankenstein and Fairy God mother they called themselves)